The National Times - News around the clock from Sydney, Australia and around the world

A giant whale stole the show at the Summer Olympic Games, shooting out of the water as athletes competed in women's surfing semi-finals on the French Pacific island of Tahiti last month.

Colin Farrell resisted rewatching iconic mob drama "The Sopranos" while preparing for his turn as a gangster boss in "The Penguin," the Irish star of the new Batman universe series told AFP on Tuesday.

For decades, Diddy and his myriad aliases loomed large in pop culture as an impeccably dressed rap magnate who reigned over lavish parties and media boardrooms with class and confidence.

North Korea fired a salvo of short-range ballistic missiles early Wednesday, Seoul's military said, Pyongyang's second such weapons test in a week.

Bayern Munich became the first team to score nine goals in a game in the modern Champions League as the new format of Europe's elite club competition kicked off on Tuesday, with title holders Real Madrid and Liverpool also among the winners.

Lawmakers in Texas, medical experts and the best-selling novelist John Grisham are pushing to save an autistic death row inmate whose daughter died in 2002 in a tragedy blamed on shaken baby syndrome.

Venezuela said Tuesday it had arrested a fourth US citizen over what it claims was a plot to assassinate President Nicolas Maduro in the aftermath of elections the opposition claims he stole.

Kylian Mbappe scored on his first Champions League appearance for Real Madrid as the holders started their trophy defence with a 3-1 win over Stuttgart on Tuesday.

Manchester United crushed Barnsley 7-0 as troubled winger Antony scored his first goal this season and Marcus Rashford struck twice to extend his revival in the League Cup third round on Tuesday.

Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa faces a lengthy spell on the sidelines after suffering the latest in a series of concussions which prompted calls for him to retire.

Liverpool strutted to a 3-1 win at AC Milan on Tuesday as the Reds got their campaign in the revamped Champions League off to a stylish start.

Harry Kane scored four goals, including three penalties, as Bayern Munich beat Dinamo Zagreb 9-2 at home on Tuesday -- becoming the first team to score nine goals in a Champions League match.

Kylian Mbappe scored on his first Champions League appearance for Real Madrid as the holders started their trophy defence with a 3-1 win over Stuttgart on Tuesday.

More than 3,600 chemicals used in food packaging or preparation have been detected in human bodies, some of which are hazardous to health, while little is known about others, a study published on Tuesday said.

Kamala Harris called Donald Trump on Tuesday after he faced another apparent assassination attempt, though she separately condemned him for "hateful" peddling of false stories about Haitian migrants eating pets.

Wall Street stocks finished little changed Tuesday as investors weighed how better than expected retail sales data would affect a Federal Reserve decision.

Inter Milan goalkeeper Yann Sommer is adamant his side can stop the prolific Erling Haaland from scoring even if they remain wary of Manchester City's other attacking threats.

A report by environmental and rights NGOs Tuesday linked three major meatpacking companies to illegal deforestation in Brazil, where farmers are accused of spraying herbicides from the sky to clear huge tracts of land.

Bolivian ex-president Evo Morales embarked on a seven-day march with thousands of supporters Tuesday against incumbent leader Luis Arce, who has denounced the protest as a "coup attempt."

England wicketkeeper Jamie Smith aims to emulate Brendon McCullum's playing style after the New Zealander gave him his chance in both Test and one-day international (ODI) cricket this season.

An election official in Arizona is to ask a court Tuesday to rule on whether almost 100,000 long-term residents will be able to vote in state and local polls this November after discovering they had not proved their US citizenship.

Aston Villa made a stylish return to the Champions League with a 3-0 win at Swiss side Young Boys on Tuesday in their first game in the tournament for 41 years.

Israel has scored a major intelligence success by apparently infiltrating a supply chain to cause the simultaneous explosion of hundreds of Hezbollah pagers in a blow for the Lebanese militant group and its Iranian backers, analysts say.

Brendan Rodgers believes he has never been better prepared to lead Celtic into a Champions League campaign as the Glasgow giants bid to put years of misery in Europe's elite club competition behind them this season.

The commander of the daring space voyage that included the first-ever spacewalk by private astronauts described opening the hatch into the void as an "emotional experience" that left him in awe, yet deeply aware of the dangers.

The death toll in the extreme weather and flooding let loose by Storm Boris in central Europe has risen to 22, authorities said on Tuesday, after three more victims were reported in Poland and one in Austria.

Hundreds of pagers used by Hezbollah members exploded across Lebanon Tuesday, killing at least nine people and wounding some 2,800 in blasts the Iran-backed militant group blamed on Israel.

Negotiators from Boeing and the machinists union representing its workers resumed talks Tuesday after some 33,000 employees went on strike late last week, effectively shutting down two Seattle-area factories.

More than 3,600 chemicals used in food packaging or preparation have been detected in human bodies, some of which are hazardous to health, while little is known about others, a study said Tuesday.

Australia's Adam Zampa insists he has come to terms with the idea he will never play in an Ashes Test as he prepares for his 100th one-day international appearance.

UN member states debated Tuesday a push by the Palestinians to formally demand an end to the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories within 12 months.

Marseille announced on Tuesday the signing of French international midfielder Adrien Rabiot, with whom they had already reached an "agreement in principle".